Montana is a wild west state that was never truly tamed, a place where folks are so far and few in between that an independent spirit and sense of self-sufficiency are almost a requirement to live here. Cattle ranching, railroads, mining, homesteading, and the military brought many early residents to this state, and some might say not much has changed since the first white settlers arrived here. ​

Much of what made Montana what it is today can be found in its forgotten places, in the abandoned communities that thrived and then died in this rough and tumble state. Old mining towns and stagecoach stops harken back to the days when going west was synonymous with getting rich - and occasionally dying trying. Cowboys, calamities and sinners converged on outposts each in the running for the title of the west’s wickedest city. Soldiers worked to both keep the peace at home and abroad at towns that became their camps. Bootleg booze and fresh water made communities that came out of and disappeared back into nothingness.

On the U.S.-Canada border in the state of Montana sits an area long known as the Crown of the Continent. Ice formations from these mountains melt into rivers that spill into the Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean and Hudson Bay, making it a water source for much of the country. Native tribes considered the area the backbone of the world. Caribou, bison, grizzly bears, mountain goat, big horned sheep and wolves have long called this park their home, an ecosystem considered one of the most important and beautiful in the world. With more than 700 miles of trails, visitors to this area can retrace the steps of native tribes, early explorers and settlers, imagining what the virgin forests and mountains of America once looked like when the first people traversed this landscape.

Glacier National Park captures not only the beauty of Montana but the magnificence of the American frontier, a national park where visitors can step back in time to the days of early settlers in log cabin, fur trappers in lean-to huts and Native American tribes following bison and caribou across the forests and mountains. For more than 100 years, visitors have been coming to this park to get a glimpse of one of the world’s last wildernesses. Glacier’s wild beauty and environmental importance truly make this park the crown of the continent.

On more than 2.2 million acres of land in three states, Yellowstone National Park is home to some of the most beloved and most beautiful natural wonders in the entire world. A national landmark, one of Yellowstone’s biggest claims to fame is being the very first national park in America and, according to some, the first national park ever created worldwide. Setting the tone for further conservation and preservation of naturally, geographically and historically important national sites, Yellowstone has been America’s wonderland since its foundation nearly 150 years ago. Today, Yellowstone is not only a place of national heritage for Americans but a site recognized the world over for its wonders, wildlife and its dedication to conservation of some of America's most beautiful natural resources.

In addition to the nearly 3.4 million tourists who come from around the world to tour Yellowstone, the park is also home to researchers and biologists. These scientists are working to study the volcanic and geothermal energy of the park as we ll as preserving the animal and plant life that dwells within.